09.12.22 - My childhood Christmas in a village in Greenland

By Petrine ”Pitsi” Karolussen

My childhood home is located in a small settlement of around 500 inhabitants called Kangaamiut, which lies north of Maniitsoq in West Greenland. It’s a place where everyone knows everyone else.

There are lots of Christmas traditions that are still upheld. I’ll briefly describe the different traditions that are practised in the settlement during the Christmas and New Year period, from which I treasure lots of good memories.

Christmas Eve – 24th December
Early in the morning, children typically go from house to house singing Christmas carols. It’s dark at this time, so the children usually hold a Chinese lamp to light their way. As a reward for their singing, they usually receive a bag of sweets or some other goodies at each house.

This is followed by a Christmas tree celebration for both adults and young people in the village hall, which is attended by the majority of adults. The day begins by singing a Christmas hymn and there’ll be a reading from the Gospel according to Luke, followed by the choir singing a Christmas carol. 

Young people give each other gifts, whereby all those signed up for the Christmas tree celebration are drawn by lot. The person drawn then gets a box full of all sorts of different articles. These may include toiletries, biscuits, coffee, notepads or something similar. This is actually an old tradition that stems from the time when it was difficult to get supplies of goods and when you couldn’t take the provision of everyday groceries and other articles for granted.

This celebration is finished by a communal Christmas carol outside and then fireworks, which is a signal to the children that the Christmas tree celebration for young people is over.

Following lunch, children from 1st – 8th grade perform part of the Nativity Play, such that it’s begun by 1st grade pupils and completed by 8th grade pupils. Every class also sings a Christmas hymn. Parents and families are present in order to listen to the children.

Christmas Day – 25th December
Adults go out very early in the morning – typically from five o’clock to half past five – and sing the Christmas hymn “Maanna Juullisioratta”. Initially, there are perhaps just five singers, but this number gradually swells until eventually singers are spread out throughout the settlement so that every house is able to hear the hymn.

Finally, everybody meets at the site of the village Christmas tree and sings a hymn together.

At eight o’clock there’s a church service. The majority of families attend this service dressed in their finest clothes and Greenlandic national costumes. After the service, people shake hands and begin walking past all the houses in order to wish each other ‘Merry Christmas’. You usually get a few sweets or biscuits at each house.

Early in the morning of the last day of the year you mark the imminent change of year by firing spud guns. In a similar manner to Christmas Eve, you walk from house to house, where homemade bread in the shape of a girl or in the shape of a pipe for the boys will be served.

Pitsi Karolussen

The last day of the year – 31st December

Late in the afternoon there’s a service at the church. Once this has finished, people begin to gather in groups according to their year of birth and then go somewhere to eat and enjoy themselves. If there are 12 in a group, they would typically go to 12 houses and eat. When you’re outside and meet groups of people born in another year, you have to shout your own year of birth as loudly as you can. In Greenland, the year in which you’re born is just as important as where you’re from.

Finally, all the adults who want to and those who’ve held their parties meet in the centre of the town at midnight and sing traditional local New Year songs, before letting off fireworks and wishing each other Happy New Year.

New Year’s Day – 1st January
On New Year’s Day you meet again at noon and repeat many of the same traditions that took place the previous evening at midnight, in particular so that the children also have the chance to enjoy the fireworks and songs.

These are the most important common traditions I can recall, although there are many other things people do both before and after Christmas.

I wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

Pitsi Karolussen